


Sing Along

by ToastyDehmer



Series: ESCAPE, TRANSFORMATION, AND ASCENSION [2]
Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Blood, Forced Suicide, M/M, Mpreg, Not Canon Compliant
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:01:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23785966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToastyDehmer/pseuds/ToastyDehmer
Summary: There are three facts that still rule Rhys' life.He is still an Omega. He is still a Siren. But most unfortunately of all, he is still soulmate to Handsome Jack.Fortunately (depending on who you asked) a lot could change in two years.
Relationships: Handsome Jack & Vaughn (Borderlands), Handsome Jack/Rhys (Borderlands), Rhys & Vaughn (Borderlands)
Series: ESCAPE, TRANSFORMATION, AND ASCENSION [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1598809
Comments: 41
Kudos: 130





	Sing Along

**Author's Note:**

> HEHEHEHEHE ARE YA'LL READY FOR ANOTHER FECKIN TRAIN RIDE!? Bc i'm not. lmao

Hollow Point was alight with the flashes of gunfire and the waves of heaving flames. It was _boiling_ in the great cave and Jack was running through the maze of buildings to get at the center of it all with only his pistol and some stunner ammo. The cave walls echoed with the sounds of Bandits, Crimson Raiders, and Jack’s own forces fighting. Jack’s grip on his gun tightened. Just like him, all Hyperion soldiers only had stunners and tranqs. The question of how many of his men and women would die wormed its way into his thoughts. When the Purple Skag came into view, Jack forcefully shoved the worry away for _after_ this was all said and done with.

Jack hopped over the numerous still bodies of both Bandits and Raiders, Hyperion Special Ops. forces uncloaking when he just about landed at the foot of the steps leading up to the bar.

“How many and who.” It was the only thing to come out of Jack’s mouth for over an hour, his pistol holstered.

Neither Jack nor the commander of the little squad spared a glance at the bodies behind them. Jack already knew only a small amount were still alive, unconscious and bound.

“We’ve confirmed at least seven pople inside,” the commander answered. The rest of the squadron came closer, each with a sight at their surroundings, black armor stained with yellow tones from the fires around them. “Of those seven are Zero the assassin, Axton the commando, Maya the Siren, and Lilith the Fir-”

There was a gunshot- a scream from inside and Jack’s blood froze.

_It was Rhys’ scream._

Jack snatched the tranq gun out of the commander’s hands and darted up the steps. In the moment it took to burst through the double doors, Jack pulled a purple dart out of his ECHO device, loaded it, and raised the gun up. He didn’t hesitate in aiming. Not with what he heard. And what he saw- It did the opposite of slowing him down.

The wood floors were charred from where Jack stood and outwards into the rest of the bar. Stools and chairs and tables were broken into chunks and pieces and scattered to the walls. Tossed and crumpled at the edges of the room were Axton, Maya, Zero, and two other people. The center of the bar room was barren except for two people.

With flame-like wings at her back pridefully spread, Lilith stood without a single scratch on her and a gun in her hand pointed directly down at- _at Rhys’ forehead._

Rhys- he- Rhys was down on his knees. There was blood dripping down the left side of his face, ECHOeye closed. His lips were pulled back in a snarling grimace, the man panting. His shoulders were heaving. His clothes were burnt at the edges, ripped and torn in places. His silver cybernetic hand was tightly holding onto his other shoulder, his shoulder with a hole in it and blood pouring down the bare, limp arm. And his markings- they flickered with a bright blue light on and off.

Jack took aim. Sucked in a breath. Held it.

Lilith started to turn the moment he exhaled and pulled the trigger. Her golden eyes looked at Jack first in shock then in fury. Jack’s purple dart hit its mark - Lilith’s neck. The change was immediate. She took a step back and pulled it out but it was already too late. It was an empty canister when she looked at it. Jack watched with stony eyes and thinned lips as she stumbled another step away. He didn’t say a word. Just watched while his Special Ops team filed in from behind him and awaited orders.

Lilith’s fiery wings were the first to go, there one second and gone the next. She started to sway, held her head after dropping the gun to the ground harmlessly. Her hands and arms and legs started to shake. Her markings flickered one, twice. Then those went out too. And then finally she fell into a slump on the floor.

“Put them all in cuffs,” Jack finally commanded after a moment. His eyes were still on Lilith, watching for any sign that his formula failed or was flawed. But she stayed silent, stayed still. Most importantly, she kept breathing.

The soldiers all started moving as one. As ordered, they went around and gathered the unconscious, cuffed their arms behind their backs, and strategically placed them apart from each other. Each man and woman had a gun on them. Still tranqs but it was better than nothing.

Jack calmly walked over to the gun Lilith dropped. The man stared at it for half a second before bending down. He picked it up. The metal felt heavier than it had any right to be. He looked back over at Lilith’s still form. Anger rose like a familiar friend.

 _‘She deserves it, Jack.’_ For once, they agreed. His hand tightened. He raised the weapon until its barrel was pointed at her skull. He thought of everything she ruined, everything she _took_ from him. All because of one single punch. Jack swore he felt his scar burn just from thinking about the horrible memory. _‘Do it.’_

His finger twitched around the trigger.

 _‘Prove it.’_ Vaughn. Fucking- _Vaughn._ Jack hated how that man had a point back on Helios. Remembering his words was all it took for him to drop the gun back down to his side with a fierce snarl. Jack glared at her the entire time someone cuffed her as well.

A whimper.

Jack snapped his attention to Rhys. Horror rose. The idiot was _digging into the gunshot wound._ His first instinct was to run to Rhys. A vicious, feral growl stopped him, a singular glowing blue eye making Jack remember how dangerous Rhys could be. He stopped in his tracks only a couple meters away, felt helpless when Rhys started to weakly stand. The younger man didn’t stop holding his shoulder and he winced whenever his arm so much as shifted.

“Rhys-”

“ _Don’t._ ” Jack winced. He knew he deserved it. Deserved the animalistic glare and the fury behind it. Rhys’ hair was a mess and a few strands fell to hang in front of his face. He stood half slumped, like he was barely standing up. “I never asked for _your_ help, Jack.”

“I-I know-”

“ ** _How!?_** ” Rhys bared his teeth and Jack would swear up and down that literal flame came to life in Rhys’ one glowing eye before dying in the next second, his Siren markings flashing brightly with it. “How could you possibly know!? _You were never supposed to find this place._ ”

Jack could hear the unspoken statement. Jack was never supposed to find _Rhys._ Jack swallowed feeling like there was lead in his throat while he ducked his head and shoulders down, dropped the pistol and raised his hands up with his palms to Rhys. There was smoke and anger and sweat and gunpowder in the air so strongly it blocked just about everything else but the scent of Rhys’ blood was like sirens in Jack ears. His worry was plaintive and unhidden in every possible way.

“Please, let me explai-”

“Let _you_ explain? You!?” As if Jack’s very presence scared him, Rhys took a step back. Jack’s heart squeezed and contorted in his chest. Painfully. “Why should I let you explain after everything you did to me? What you _could_ do to me.”

Jack didn’t miss the glance Rhys sent to Lilith.

“Vaughn.” It was a desperate attempt to calm Rhys, to have him settle enough for Jack to say more than a few words. And hopefully say enough quickly enough to convince Rhys to _let him help._ _‘Gods, so much blood.’_

And it worked. Rhys paused. He eyed Jack up and down. Sweat dripped down the side of his face, mixed with his blood, and fell to the floor. Outside a literal war waged but it was already quieter than it had been mere minutes ago. It felt like an eternity passed before Rhys spoke with a tense tone.

“Explain.” It was all he gave, all he demanded. And Jack quickly met it.

“Moxxi called him. She told him you were in trouble, that Lilith was coming to- to kill you. I was there. I asked to go. He let me.”

Rhys’ eyes narrowed.

“Vaughn ‘let’ you come.” A low growl. “Somehow I don’t believe that.”

Jack thought about what to say. He ended up with the truth, voice soft.

“Lot can change in two years, Rhys.”

There was no response. Jack wagered it was because Rhys understood how true that fact was at a personal level. Jack had changed. And just from looking at Rhys, Jack knew it was the same for him.

Rhys’ clothes were nothing like what he wore in the past. Weathered brown leather boots. Stained blue jeans that were faded and threadbare in spots and ripped in others. A black belt with latched pouches on either side of him. Tucked in white T-shirt, it too stained and dirty to hell and back with the sleeves torn short, a short orange parka vest over it. Black welding goggles perched on top of his head and holding back his hair like a headband. And to top it all off, his shiny silver-colored arm. Probably a chrome alloy of some kind. It looked recent, scratches in the metal showing it wasn’t new. Jack wanted to hear the story behind it.

He’d hear it. Hopefully later.

Rhys opened his mouth. Jack’s hopes rose.

A young scream sounded from up the stairs behind Rhys, a thud shortly following it. They both looked up them, Rhys with rising panic and Jack with confusion. It sounded like a kid? A little one. Like a baby. But what was a baby doing-

“Sasha,” Rhys breathed. There was a pause, held together by a single strand of silk. It was violently ripped when a gunshot and a shrill scream of ‘MAMA!’ broke the silence. “HOPE!”

Rhys ran up the stairs and his fear in the air was so strong, Jack was helpless to obey his instincts and follow, his only thought _protect._ He chased after Rhys up the stairs and then flew down the hall to a door at the end. Jack reached the top of the stairs the same time Rhys slammed that door open.

“ **NO!** ” It was such a visceral roar, anger giving it a terrifying tenor. And the look on Rhys’ face just before he darted inside and out of Jack’s sight sent an instinctive shiver down the Alpha’s spine.

Rhys sounded borderline Feral.

Jack raced to the door. A bright blue flash almost blinded him but he raised an arm just before rounding the frame. It disappeared and he quickly brought it down, looking at the scene before him.

There was some chick with dreads crumpled next to a crib where a crying baby sat and right in front of it stood Rhys with a Raider’s head in his flesh hand, snarling with teeth bared, his arm glowing bright as a star, and enough power flowing through him that it arced across his frame like miniature lightning, even his bright eyes gave off wisps. That scene was- it was fearsome. It was disturbing. It was frightening. It was…

Stunning.

There was the person the universe believed was his soulmate, his other half, his one and only true equal. Jack still wasn’t sure he bought into the whole but he felt humbled realizing Rhys, the stunning creature he was, had Jack’s Mark on his skin. Rhys was powerful. Powerful enough that it would’ve scared Jack if he didn’t know that power couldn’t be used against him. And Rhys was stunning.

“Take out. Your gun.” Rhys’ voice was chilling, steady. Blood was dripping off his elbow and onto the floor and the kid was still crying in the background, sniffling now. None of it mattered. None of it had a single effect on the atmosphere surrounding Rhys.

The Raider haltingly followed the command with jilted movements of his arm, hand taking out their side pistol.

“Put it against your head.”

Again the command was followed and horror made Jack’s gut sink as it sunk in just what was going to happen.

“P-Please-” The way the Raider talked… it was as if he could barely get the words out. “I… d-don’t… wanna…. d-die. N-Not lik-ke… this.”

They were sobbing, Jack realized. The Raider was sobbing, begging for their life. Rhys could’ve been cut from marble for all his expression changed. His glowing eyes were stony, his face cold. Jack knew what was coming next. Thought he knew what to expect.

“Pull the trigger.”

“NO-!”

The Raider didn’t get to finish their sentence. They blew their own brains out, the bullet easily coming out the other side and dragging a piece of their skull with it. For a second, the body stayed standing. And then all at once gravity pulled it down to the floor, literal dead weight dropping with a resounding and final thud.

Rhys’ chest heaved. The glow flickered then guttered. With his light went his strength and Rhys collapsed, falling down to his knees with a weak cry. Jack, damn the consequences, didn’t hesitate this time. He darted in and caught Rhys before he hit the ground. Rhys growled and bared his teeth, eyes wide and wild. Jack ignored it.

“I get it, you can easily kill me now knock it off,” Jack hissed. “You’re gonna kill yourself at this rate.”

“Fuck off, Jackass.” The retort itself was weak. Rhys didn’t fight back or push at Jack. That in of itself was more worrying than anything else.

The first thing Jack checked was whatever was making Rhys’ head bleed. It was somewhere in his hair. A gash of some sort. Must have hit his head. It was fine, stopped bleeding a bit ago from the looks of it. Jack gently prodded it, Rhys hissed. Still tender. His head was fine. Glancing at his shoulder…

It was still bleeding. Profusely.

Jack tried to look it over as best he could. The flesh around the bullet hole was a mangled mess and Jack winced in sympathy. He knew what those kinds of shots felt like. As he further examined it, one thing became immediately apparent. Jack swore his heart nearly stopped when he figured out there was no exit wound.

That bullet was still in there.

“Shit.” He looked up from Rhys’s shoulder. “Rhys-”

Rhys was passed out.

“Dammit-”

“Sir.” It was the commander of the Special Ops. “Everyone downstairs has been-”

“I need emergency transport immediately,” Jack spoke over them. He couldn’t make himself look away from Rhys. “He needs- his shoulder’s fucked. There’s a bullet stuck in there. I need him prioritized.”

His voice booked no room for argument. Not that he needed to worry about that. Jack heard the telltale sound of a salute behind him.

“Understood, sir. What about-?”

“Mama?”

Jack’s head whipped about and peered over his shoulder. He stared up at the baby, a pair of hauntingly familiar, red-rimmed, wet green and blue eyes looking back at him from between the bars, thick brown waves falling in front of their face. Jack was struck still and silent. The baby tried to reach through the bars, hand grabbing in Rhys’ direction. Big, fat tears started sliding down their cheeks. Another sniffle.

“M-Mama?”

The baby’s hand was barely a couple inches from Jack’s face and he caught a whiff of-

Rhys. Pandora. Himself. Fear. Sadness. And something else. It was so difficult to try to put into words or describe it. But he knew without a single doubt that this kid was Rhys’... and his.

“Sir?”

He was a Dad. Again. He had a baby...girl.

“Go-” Jack swallowed thickly. Tried again. “Go do what I told you to. Make sure everyone downstairs is secured. Including Dreads over there. We’re taking them as prisoners until I can- until I can sort through this mess.”

Jack didn’t hear the commander’s response but he knew they left.

The baby- what had Rhys called her? Hope? She started wailing. The care Jack took in setting Rhys down on the floor would’ve made people think the Omega was made of glass. Between one moment and the next, Jack was standing in front of the crib. Hope looked up at Jack. She reached for him, grabby hands. Jack’s own shook as he slowly, slowly reached in. Like Rhys, Jack held Hope and moved her like he could break her at any moment.

It’d been a long time since Jack was genuinely afraid. Today had been rife with it.

Hope grabbed him with her tiny, tiny hands. She held tightly onto Jack. She pressed her nose right into Jack’s neck and her cries quickly quieted back down to sniffles. Jack held her close to his chest. And he silently, blankly cried.

Turning around, he stared down at the dead Raider. The one Rhys killed. The one Rhys _forced_ to shoot themselves. Mercilessly.

Two years was a long time for things to change.

* * *

When Rhys woke up the first time, everything hurt. And he did mean _everything._ Even down to his fingernails and eyelids. He was one single cellular unit of pain. And the first thing he did when he woke up was bite back the automatic scream.

Where the fuck were August and Sasha and _why_ didn’t they have Zed give him the good shit yet? When Rhys found out, he was going to ream them a new one regardless of the answer.

Someone moved to his left and Rhys forced his eyes open.

Everything...was white.

He couldn’t hear the machine but he could hear his heartbeat suddenly shoot skyhigh right in his ears like a pulsing drum.

Everything was white. Everything was clean. Everything smelled like antiseptic.

_Nothing smelled like home._

Rhys tried to sit up, tried to move, to get out of the bed, to do anything but he was strapped in like he was in an insane asylum. His legs were strapped down. His arms- _arm_ was strapped down, his chrome arm _gone._ His head was strapped down, his chest, hips, knees.

His powers still worked but he couldn’t- **_Where was everyone._ ** He couldn’t sense a single person. Not August or Fiona or Sasha or Timothy or Zero or- or- or-

**Where was his baby.**

Distantly, Rhys knew he was hyperventilating but that knowledge took a seat on the backburner when he felt something pierce his neck. He felt it when whoever held the syringe pressed the plunger, felt when whatever they were giving him entered his bloodstream. To him, the change from panicked to passing out felt all too abrupt.

Rhys’ eyes fluttered shut and he fell back asleep.

* * *

The second time Rhys woke up, he was better prepared for the pain. Most importantly, he was aware that he wasn’t on Pandora any longer. Rhys woke up, calmly opened his eyes, and observed. The room was still too white, too _clean_ for comfort. He hated it. Rhys didn’t know where he was or why and he already hated the room he was in. There wasn’t even a window to let him in on _where_ the hell he was. Just- walls. Walls and a single door. Even his ECHOeye was out, Felicity with it. There was no comfort to be had. Period.

At least he wasn’t strapped down to the nines this time. He was even sitting up. Though, downside, all he had on for clothes were a hospital gown and a sling for his left arm. And his bandaged shoulder hurt like a bitch.

Just like before, someone shifted to Rhys’ left but this time Rhys nearly jumped out of his skin. Their upper body was almost draped across the bed. Rhys looked over to see who it was and-

Vaughn. It was-... Vaughn.

Rhys’ breath caught in his throat, his eyes wide saucers while he took in the sight of his old friend.

Vaughn was the same but at the same time, so different.

His hair was longer and styled back. He had a full-on beard going. His glasses still had a green tint to them but these ones were newer, more sleek looking. Stylish. His suit vest was hung on the back of his chair but this one, just like the glasses, was newer. It was a charcoal color and had a satin look to it. Too expensive for what they had before Rhys left. Even his undershirt looked more expensive than what Rhys could last recall seeing Vaughn in.

Gods that felt like ages ago instead of the year and ten months it really had been.

The guilt hit pretty hard. Even though it had been for good reasons, Rhys had _abandoned_ his best friend for almost two whole years. He felt like a piece of shit for it.

And then Vaughn was waking up and sitting up and he had huge, dark bags under his eyes and Rhys felt like even an even bigger piece of shit.

Vaughn, adorable little man that he was, sleepily stared at Rhys for a good fifteen seconds, stare blank and uncomprehending. And then it seemed to hit him like a freight train all at once.

One second, Vaughn was sucking in a gigantic breath. His eyes opened as wide as when Rhys told him he was from Rhea. He sat up as straight as he had for their college graduation. His body shook like it had when the college campus adopted pet cat mascot died. Yeah, everyone had been aware the title was a mouthful.

Another second and Vaughn was leaping at Rhys. He wrapped his arms as tightly around Rhys as he did when they found out they’d be able to go to Hyperion together after college. Cried as loudly as he did back then too.

“RHYS!”

It...honestly shocked Rhys. He left his best friend behind. It would’ve been fair if Vaughn was pissed at him, punched him or something. Instead he was clutching at Rhys like he had almost died.

A sniffle left Rhys and his lips curled in a watery smile before he leaned into the hold. Vaughn’s familiar and oh-so distinct scent was a soothing balm and every bit of tension in Rhys just...disappeared. He sagged into the hug, tired and exhausted. But it couldn’t last. Nothing good ever did.

“Not that I’m not happy to see you, Vaughn, but,” Rhys pulled back. He looked down at Vaughn, worry masked as wariness making the lines in his face all too clear. “Where’s my baby. Where. Is. Hope.”

Vaughn winced. Panic rose in Rhys. Why would he wince?

“You’re not going to like this but…”

“But. **What.** ”

Even in the sling, the light from Rhys’ arm was easy to see.

Vaughn hesitated. He looked away and bounced his leg, frowned and bit his lower lip.

“I swear to the Gods, best friend or not, if you don’t tell me right now-”

“Hope’s with Jack.”

Just three words was all it took for Rhys to feel like his world was lost. Hope was gone. Hope was with Jack. _Hope was his world._

Rhys was grateful the heart rate monitor was gone because it was going nuts in his ribcage. Again, he was hyperventilating, distantly aware of the fact but- Hope- his baby girl- _Rhys’ whole world-_

“Rhys.” Vaughn. Vaughn was leaning over the bed. His face was pinched. “I need you to listen to me, okay? Please. I swear on my life that she’s okay.”

Rhys was shaking. His head felt light. When a pair of hands grabbed his head and forced him to look up, he flinched, almost flinched out of the hold. But Vaughn held on and made Rhys look him in the eyes. Grounding green peered at Rhys with steadfast determination and a calm veneer.

“Hope. Is. Safe.” Vaughn lightly shook Rhys’ head. “You woke up in the middle of transport and you went Feral. You- you almost hurt her.”

No. No, he wouldn’t. He would never. But… Rhys knew what was possible of a person who turned Feral. It made Rhys sick to his stomach to even think that- that he-

“Is she….okay?” Rhys asked, tears brimming his eyes. He sucked in a ragged breath. Vaughn nodded.

“She’s with Jack because she wouldn’t let go of him. Bit anyone who got too close.” Vaughn winced again. “Gotta say, she’s got one hell of a pair of lungs and a set of chompers on her.”

“She…” Confusion made it hard for Rhys to put his thoughts into words. “Why would she… Hope bit you?”

“Yeah she uh,” Vaughn let go of Rhys’ head and he rubbed at the back of his neck. “She didn’t want to be taken away from Jack. And at the time, we couldn’t bring her to you. You were in surgery to get that bullet removed in your shoulder and then you were sleeping it all off for a week-”

What.

“Hold on. I was out… for an entire _week_?” Vaughn went to answer but Rhys shook his head. “You know what? Nevermind. Just- tell me. Where do we go from here.”

There was a pause where they just looked at each other, silent. Vaughn was the one to break the staring contest, instead sighing and looking down at his feet.

“I’ll be honest. Jack was hoping you’d be willing to stay. Here, on Helios. At least for a while.” There was more to that. Rhys could tell. So he waited. Eventually, Vaughn added on with a mumble, “And I’m kind of agreeing with him.”

Rhys narrowed his eyes.

“So, what. You’re on his side now? All buddy buddy with Jackass after I had to leave?”

Vaughn snapped his eyes back up to Rhys, affronted.

“Excuse me? What? It’s not like that at all, Rhys.”

“Oh yeah? Then tell me what it is like.”

“Two years is a lot of time for things to change.”

“That’s what he said,” Rhys lowly hissed.

“And he’s right.” Vaughn’s tone brooked no room for argument. That was one thing Rhys had always liked about his best friend. When he made up his mind, he was resolute about it, steadfast. And he stood by his choices. Now though, Rhys didn’t know what to think.

He just wanted Hope back in his arms.

Vaughn sighed. Rhys knew that sound. Exasperated. Tired. Stressed beyond all hell. Rhys watched the Beta shake his head, rub his forehead, and run a hand through his hair. He looked at Rhys and Rhys saw the exhaustion in Vaughn’s gaze. He looked like he wanted to give up.

“Alright. I know you want to see Hope but it’s literally the middle of the night. She’s sleeping. But as soon as Jack wakes up, I’ll have him bring her down. In the meantime… why don’t we catch up.”

Silence. Rhys gave nothing, only a suspicious stare.

“I’ve missed you Rhys. You’re still my best friend. Just-...what happened down there? Why did Lilith of all people decide to attack _you_?” The puzzlement portrayed on Vaughn’s face was genuine, that at least Rhys could still call with certainty. “Last I remember you hated conflict. Nine times out of ten you’d rather keep your head down that risk getting hurt. I mean, ‘I’m allergic to pain’ was your motto for the majority of college.”

Another moment. Finally, Rhys gave in with a mumble.

“Still is.”

“Then what changed?”

Rhys took a big breath. In front of him, confused and...seemingly lost was Vaughn. Vaughn who had been his best friend through thick and thin. Vaughn who Rhys left behind. Vaughn who...who promised to always be on his side since they joined Hyperion together. This was the only friend who kept that promise. Yvette betrayed the both of them (and he was still holding that grudge). Everyone else on Helios had lied time and time again, taken advantage of the both of them. But never Vaughn.

Was it wrong that despite all that, Rhys still felt skeptical? Two years _was_ a long time. And a lot _could_ change in it. He wasn’t sure where they stood with each other but Vaughn was trying. He was trying to reach out and understand. Didn’t he deserve the same courtesy?

Rhys wasn’t sure anymore. On Pandora, things had been different, so damn different. On Pandora, he was strong. No one dared to cross him. On Pandora he felt like a king. On Pandora….everything was cut and dry. There weren’t tricks. There wasn’t sabotage. There was only a need to survive and a willingness to do whatever it meant to do so. Courtesy was a joke. But here on Helios, Rhys needed at least one ally. And right then, Vaughn was his only choice.

So Rhys buckled down and decided to lay all his cards out.

“Well, I joined a bandit clan, became the leader of that clan, made my clan one of the strongest and largest out there. That made Lilith feel threatened - or so I was told. She wanted to kill me, attacked with the Raiders, and almost won until Jack came and now here I am.”

He said it all so easily. As if it were all another walk in the park for him. And at that point in his life...it kind of was. There was a ton he wasn’t saying but that had been the short and the sweet of it all. If it could be called sweet. And after he laid it all out, he watched Vaughn, lips flat, eyes blank. And Vaughn was...

Flabbergasted. His mouth opened and closed like a dumb fish pulled fresh out of the water. His eyes bulged. All at once he slumped back in his chair, hand on the side of his face, glasses askew. Rhys pointedly raised a brow.

“Well?”

“...I’m still stuck on the first part, bro.”

It was that blatant honesty and shock that forced the snort out of Rhys.

“To be fair, I’m still sometimes surprised by it all.” A pause, and then, “What about you?”

Vaughn took a deep breath in and just… said everything on the exhale, laid out all his cards just as Rhys had.

“Let’s see. I punched Handsome Jack in the face, he made me his personal assistant, I basically run the business with him, and have essentially been an over glorified therapist for the guy with the BIGGEST issues this side of the station for the last two years.”

Apparently it was Rhys’ turn to be stumped and stupefied because-

“You punched Jack in the face?” A nod. “And _lived?_ ”

“Yeah I was surprised by that one too.”

Like earlier, there was silence where they simply looked at each other, this time appraisingly. Obviously a lot had happened on Vaughn’s end too. And Rhys knew it was true. Vaughn had never been a good liar. He could lie by omission but only just barely. And Rhys could tell there was a lot Vaughn hadn’t said - just like Rhys hadn't earlier.

“From the beginning?” Vaughn quietly ventured. He had such a tiny smile on his lips. Small but hopeful.

Rhys nodded. “Yeah. Please.”

“Okay but...you start.”

“Where to begin,” Rhys chuckled.

“How about from the beginning?”

The beginning. Even that was full of some fucking bullshit. So much had happened in the first month it was insane to even think about. There was finding out he was pregnant, seeing the only real doctor on Pandora, meeting...Timothy. There was a lot. But…

_‘Yeah. That’ll work.’_

“How about I start with the doctor I saw on Pandora the first week I was down there,” Rhys eventually offered with a smile.

Vaughn cringed.

“Zed?”

“Gods no. I mean a real doctor. Someone who went to school and everything.”

“Who the hell would go to Pandora to be a doctor.”

Rhys snorted. “Well he wasn’t there by choice. Remember that big screw up on Pandora about four years back? The one where bandits had gotten into Opportunity?”

“I think I know the one. What about it?”

“Well, supplies weren’t the only thing the bandits took.”

“Whaaaat? No.”

“ _Yes._ ”

“Spill.”

The grin that took over Rhys’ face almost hurt. He snickered, a warm feeling of familiarity taking over. Even if he didn’t say it, Rhys had missed Vaughn too.

“His name is Havoc.”

**Author's Note:**

> So...yeah! Here we are. Don't expect an update any time soon. I only just finished this a few hours ago. I wanted to put this out so people could subscribe to the new part of the series. There's a lot planned for this - if you couldn't already tell. This fic is gonna be weird to do bc it's flashbacks. I just hope I can do it justice bc everything looks and sounds better in my head lmao
> 
> Also!!!!! The title for this fic is after the song Sing Along from the movie Rudderless. Just like HWH, this one really fits what I plan for the fic to be like, story and mood/tone-wise. Give it a listen [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5pRflJpNv0)! It's also just a really good song in general, smooth and mellow. Reminds me there's always a light somewhere at the end of every tunnel.
> 
> I can't wait to hear what you guys think of this fic as we go along.
> 
> See ya'll in the future!  
> -Toast


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